


Of Danger and Lies

by OccasionalStorytelling



Series: Sort-of-Whumptober [1]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Blood Loss, M/M, Stabbing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:21:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26761273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OccasionalStorytelling/pseuds/OccasionalStorytelling
Summary: After the end of the war, Garak and Bashir live together on Cardassia Prime. Garak works on rebuilding his home, and Julian explores the city looking for adventure. One day, something finds Julian.Warning: includes non-graphic descriptions of violence.Posted for Day One of Sort-of-Whumptober.
Relationships: Julian Bashir & Elim Garak, Julian Bashir/Elim Garak
Series: Sort-of-Whumptober [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949986
Comments: 8
Kudos: 50





	Of Danger and Lies

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to Whumptober! I've never participated in it before, I've never really tagged anything "whump" before (not even this, because I'm still not quite sure if I'm doing it properly) but here goes nothing!

Garak was sick of drinking cold tea from a broken coffee machine. He was sick of the cold winter weather making him drowsy all day. At this exact second, however, he didn’t care about either of those things, because he was too busy being sick of waiting for Julian to get home.

Julian had said he’d be gone for less than an hour. It had been twice that time already, and no still sign of him. How long could it possibly take to run a few simple errands? But leave it to Julian to get distracted. He’d be back at the the office any minute now, holding something random in one hand, that same wide-eyed surprised look splattered all over his face, saying something like “I’ve never seen this fruit before! Is it native to Cardassia?” Of course it is, Doctor. And you’ll likely find it disgusting, just like the last few Cardassian delicacies you tried. But go ahead and give it a taste, because your completely unjustified optimism is the only thing that makes life seem worth it.

It had been a long day. Garak was sick of dealing with paperwork and reports. As soon as Julian got back, they were going straight home. Garak was ready to ditch his responsibilities for the night, cuddle up with Julian (who was always so WARM, even in the winter) and talk about their hopes for the future and not about the crushing realities of reality. Julian was the perfect companion for nights like that. Garak stirred his stupid cold tea with a finger, shifted his stupid scarf around his neck against the cold, and pretended to read something on his desk while he waited for Julian to come back.

“Sir!” Garak’s assistant came busting into the office, unannounced. Tain would never have tolerated that kind of behavior, Garak reflected drily. “There’s a human dead in the street outside!”

Now that was exactly the sort of thing Julian should be here for, Garak thought. Julian was a doctor, after all, and not every Cardassian doctor knew how to treat mammals. Whoever was outside would be better off with a veterinarian. Then again, he’d be better off if he came inside and waited for Julian to treat him, just like Garak was waiting for Julian. Come to think of it, though, where did the human come from? The only human Garak knew of living in the city was Julian, and…

It wasn’t a human dead in the street outside. It was _his_ human dead in the street outside. In a swift fluid motion, Garak was suddenly past his assistant and out of the office, not even stopping to grab his coat. A small crowd was gathering in the street, murmuring and whispering to each other. Again, Tain would never have tolerated this, Garak thought grimly as he pushed though. Tain wouldn’t have let the rabble fuss over a measly dead body. If Julian was really dead, Garak didn’t know what he would do.

“Let me pass,” Garak hissed, shoving through the crowd with his sharp shoulders. He emerged into a small clear space, devoid of people except for one human lying on the ground. His dark skin color was visible through his frankly scandalous clothing choice, all that collarbone out in the open air, and in weather like this, too? Humans really have no understanding of the cold.

The body was definitely Julian. He was lying face down on the ground, clutching a scrap of fabric in one hand. His bag must have been stolen. At a brief glance, he didn’t seem hurt. Some Cardassians wouldn’t know a dead human from a sleeping one, anyway, so it was entirely possible that everything was totally fine. Everything was fine.

Tain once said that the most dangerous lies are the ones you tell yourself…especially the ones you need to believe.

Garak knelt next to Julian, and ever so gently, flipped him over so he was lying on his back. Julian coughed at this (proving he was alive, which was good) but Garak’s new view of him revealed a dark patch of red all over his stomach, bleeding sticky red through his clothes.

“Julian?” Garak cupped Bashir’s face in one hand. “What happened?”

Julian fluttered his eyes, but they didn’t open. _Come on, human medicine, try to remember something_ , Garak thought. He checked Julian’s pulse. There were some difficulties in finding it, so Garak could only assume it was weaker than usual. And Julian’s hands were cold. That wasn’t good. Julian was always so warm, but he wasn’t right now. That _really_ wasn’t good. Humans were supposed to be warm. Garak scooped Julian up off the ground, hoping that he wasn’t injuring Julian more in an attempt to help him.

“Is anyone a doctor? A veterinarian?” Garak looked around at the crowd. Nothing but blank faces and confusion.

“Then _get out of the way!”_ Garak screamed, channeling the all-consuming worry for Julian into anger and intimidation.

The crowd silently cleared a path. Despite the ridiculous cold, Garak fought through it, carrying Julian into the waiting room of his office. His assistant stood in the doorway, hovering uncertainly.

Garak took a small knife from one of his pockets and began cutting away at the fabric of Julian’s shirt. It only seemed to make the blood flow harder, and Julian’s face was starting to turn white. Garak examined the injury as best he could. It was a deep, thin cut—a stab wound. It wasn’t a very clean cut, either—clearly an amateurs work. And on top of that, humans were so _fragile._ No protective scales…and there was no point in carrying a knife on Cardassia if it couldn’t break a Cardassian’s skin. The knife must have ripped through Julian’s soft, perfect, unmarked skin like a…Garak shook his head, trying to focus.

“Call a veterinarian or a doctor,” Garak said to the assistant. “Whoever can get here first, so long as they know how to treat mammals.”

The assistant bolted out of the room, and Garak could only assume they were getting a communicator. Julian coughed and managed to flick his eyes open.

“I’m…I’m sorry I was running late,” he smiled weakly.

“Shh...it’s all right,” Garak said, gently pushing Julian’s hair out of his eyes. “What happened, dearest one?”

“Someone in the market...I was just getting back here when someone tried to take my purse. He called me a name and then...stabbed me,” Julian tried to sit up.

“Stay down,” Garak said. “Try not to move. Where’s your medkit?”

“There’s a spare at home,” Julian coughed. “The one I keep with me... it’s gone.”

“That’s okay,” Garak soothed. The medkit at home was a half hour’s walk away. Too far to be any use. “A doctor is on the way,” Garak lied. He had no idea if that was true. He hoped it was. “What do I do?” he asked.

“Put pressure on it,” Julian said. Garak removed his scarf, barely conscious anymore of the cold, and pressed it into Julian’s wound. Julian hissed with pain as he did so, then began to settle just slightly.

“How did this happen?” Garak whispered, mostly to himself.

“I’m not very good with Cardassian yet...but the name he called me. It was a compound word. Something about you, and something like “pet,” and something like “servant,” I think,” Julian said. “I guess I need to _*cough*_ brush up on those lessons you’re giving me.”

“I know the word,” Garak said through gritted teeth. “Your translation is a kind way of putting it. I…I’ve heard people call you that before, but I made it _clear_ how I felt about it and what I would do to anyone who used it,” Garak hissed.

Julian groaned. “More pressure. I’m...this hurts, it really hurts, Garak.”

Garak steeled himself, and pressed as hard as he could without breaking bones. “How’s this, my love?”

“I have no idea,” Julian sighed. “I need a doctor.”

“I know,” Garak blinked, trying to hold back tears. “I’m so sorry…whoever did this, they hurt you because of me, because of the way I love you. It’s my fault.”

“Love doesn’t hurt,” Julian coughed weakly. “And this _isn’t_ your fault. I’m...getting sleepy. Keep me awake until a doctor arrives, okay? I might be going into shock, but I’m not sure, but I don’t know what we can do about that right now anyway.”

“Okay,” Garak said, putting all his focus on applying the appropriate pressure to the wound. “How do I keep you awake?”

“Ask me questions,” Julian said. “So I have to think.”

“Okay,” Garak said as he felt Julian’s blood beginning to soak though the scarf, warming his hands. It was almost a pleasant sensation, but that body heat belonged to _Julian,_ and it shouldn’t be slipping away like this. Garak couldn’t stop himself from crying, like he hadn’t cried in a long time. “Julian, do you know where we are?”

“Your office,” Julian smiled. “My Garak, leading the way, rebuilding Cardassia.”

“That’s right,” Garak smiled sadly. “Do you remember how to say office in Cardassian?”

“No,” Julian furrowed his brow. “But I remember how to say home. And when I say _my_ home, I actually say that it’s ours, and I use your name as part of the identifying structure.”

“Good,” Garak said, his vision starting to blur with tears. “You’ll be speaking Cardassian like a native soon enough.”

“You really think so?” Julian smiled, closed his eyes, and leaned his head back.

“I do,” Garak said. “What’s your favorite word I’ve taught you so far?”

Julian didn’t respond, his muscles going slack as he started to drift off.

“No, no, Julian, stay awake, stay awake, okay?” Garak hesitated for a horrible moment between shaking him awake and maintaining the pressure on the injury. He decided to focus on the pressure, trying to keep Julian’s blood where it belonged. “Julian, please, tell me any word you can remember in Cardassian, okay? You have to focus.”

Julian stirred, and said a word that froze Garak’s blood.

“Wherever did you hear that?” Garak flushed, angrily. It meant traitor, but more than that, it meant useless object. Something you’d discard. Someone who’d die in exile. It was a word Garak hadn’t heard in a long time. It was from one of Garak’s worst memories of Tain.

“s’ the first Cardassian word I learned,” Julian said, barely conscious. “Tain said it about you when I had to talk to him about the…the thingy in your brain. I thought it had to be good, because it’s about you. Is it a good one?”

“It’s not,” Garak said tightly. Some days he wished he could make Julian forget about the Wire.

“Okay,” Julian said. “Then...beloved. How do you say that in Cardassian?”

“I’ll teach you the syllables if you can stay awake for me,” Garak whispered.

“I’m…’m trying, Garak,” Julian coughed, voice weak from the blood loss. Garak’s hands were starting to stain red as the warm, sticky blood soaked through the scarf. How much blood could humans lose before they died? Garak didn’t know. Julian had already lost a lot.

“Is it worth it?” Garak asked, not sure if the question was meant for Julian or himself. “You’re only going to get hurt, staying attached to me like this. What if this is only the beginning? What if...what if it kills you, to be loved by me?”

“It’s worth it,” Julian said. “It won’t kill me, Garak…but if it did, it would be worth it.”

Despite Garak’s best efforts to keep Julian awake, that was the last thing Julian said until the doctor arrived. The doctor worked on Julian as Garak’s assistant ushered him away to wash his hands. Garak watched the red drain away into the sink. There was so much of it. It took only a few swipes of a dermal regenerator for the doctor to close the horrible hole in Julian’s stomach, but this didn’t mean Julian was safe, yet. Garak was told they’d need a matching human blood donor or a lot of replicator units (and quickly) to replace the blood he’d lost.

“Use my replicator units,” Garak didn’t hesitate. “It’ll take too long to find a donor.”

“It’s going to be a lot of units,” the doctor said.

“Use them all if you have to,” Garak glared. The doctor looked at Garak, every inch a man capable of murder, and complied. The transplant was replicated and given to Julian.

“He’ll wake up soon,” the doctor said, after the worst of the danger was passed. “We can move him to your house now. He should rest until he’s fully healed. It might be a few days.”

“I understand,” Garak said. They moved Julian on a stretcher into a vehicle and then to Garak’s house. Garak paid the doctor and set Julian up in his bed, sitting upright for circulation.

While Julian slept, Garak sifted through Julian’s pockets. Julian had kept most of his money safe in a wallet, so that had survived the mugging. In another pocket, there was a component piece that would have fixed the broken coffee machine. Garak sighed sadly. Julian really was too good for him.

A piece of paper fell out of Julian’s coat as Garak shook it out. A note, stained just slightly red with drops of human blood. Julian’s blood. It read: “Cardassia hates you. You will never weaken us with federation values. You’re next.”

It was written in Cardassian. It was unmistakably meant for Garak. Garak shredded the note and incinerated it.

Julian woke up not longer after, to a cup of room-temperature water Garak had ready for him. “Thank you,” Julian rasped. “How am I doing? Am I gonna be okay?”

“Everything is going to be okay,” Garak lied. He had no idea how things would be.

Tain was wrong, Garak decided. The most dangerous lies are the ones you tell your lover.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a tumblr now! Check me out at occasionalstorytelling.tumblr.com  
> There you will also find a link to buy me a kofi, if you're interested in supporting me.  
> Thank you for reading!


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